Strong quake hits southern Philippines, damage reported
MINDANAO: A strong earthquake hit the southern Philippine island of Mindanao on Sunday, geologists said, causing damage and injuries in an area still recovering from a string of deadly quakes in October. Police said a rescue operation had been launched at a heavily damaged market building near the 6.8 magnitude quake’s epicentre, which is about 90 kilometres (55 miles) from the major city of Davao. Patients were evacuated from hospitals as a precaution and nervous crowds massed outside shopping malls after the powerful jolt and a series of smaller, but strong aftershocks. “They are unhurt.”There was no threat of a tsunami, said the US Geological Survey, which initially reported the magnitude at 6.9. The Philippines has been hit by several very powerful earthquakes in recent decades, including one of magnitude 7.8 that struck the northern resort town of Baguio in 1990.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 15, 2019 09:11 UTC
Anti-polio drive to begin in Sindh, Punjab and KP from Monday
Seven-day anti-polio drive will begin in Sindh from Monday. PunjabFive-day anti-polio drive will begin in all districts of Punjab from Monday. More than six point seven million children up to five years of age will be administered anti-polio drops during the campaign. Similarly, polio teams will also be available at bus stops, Afghan refugees’ camps, railway stations and other public places for this purpose. Strict security measures have been taken for the polio teams.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 15, 2019 08:48 UTC
50 bodies unearthed from Mexican mass grave
GUADALAJARA: The bodies of at least 50 people have been unearthed from a mass grave at a farm outside Mexico’s western city of Guadalajara, local authorities said. The grim site was discovered just over three weeks ago in Jalisco — a state hard-hit by violence linked to organized crime. The local prosecutor’s office said Saturday 13 of the dead — 12 men and a woman — have been identified and the remains given to their families. A mass grave with 34 bodies was discovered in a suburb of Guadalajara on September 3, while another was found nearby in May with the remains of 30 people. Nearly 2,500 murders were reported between January and November in Jalisco — where the powerful Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartel is based — state authorities have said.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 15, 2019 06:22 UTC
Young doctors assets of country: Sindh Health Minister
Sindh Minister for Health Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho has said young doctors are assets of the country. Speaking on the occasion of 4th convocation ceremony of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University Larkana, she said Chandka Medical College was established by Shaheed Zulifqar Bhutto later it was given the status of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University. Vice Chancellor Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University Professor Dr Aneela Attaur Rehman said more than 465 medical graduates including 328 Girls were conferred degrees. On the occasion, about 50 gold medals and silver medals were awarded to graduates.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 15, 2019 04:52 UTC
PIC attack ‘provocateur’ Dr Irfan was accused of murder in 2018
According to details, Dr Irfan was among four doctors who were nominated in FIR No. “Kiran went to the doctor on duty, Dr Saira, who was playing with her cell phone while sipping on tea,” Anil said. “Dr Saira told Kiran to wait outside until she finished her tea. “Around 15 to 20 paramedical staff and security guards and eight to 10 young doctors, including Dr Irfan, Dr Salman, Dr Hasan and Dr Sahi lunged at us with iron rods, chairs, leather belts and other things and started beating us,” he said. In the video, Dr Irfan is seen narrating an encounter with some lawyers in front of a group of medical and paramedical staff of PIC.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 18:22 UTC
SC can’t dictate parliament on legislation, Fawad says
Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry has said that the Supreme Court (SC) does not have the authority to dictate to the parliament on what matters to legislate on and how, Voice of America (VOA) reported the other day. Chaudhry, while speaking to VOA Urdu, questioned the judiciary’s authority to direct the parliament on legislative matters, saying: “The Supreme Court’s orders have a lot of legal defects and shortcomings. “The Supreme Court cannot tell the parliament that ‘you can legislate on this but cannot legislate on that’ or ‘you can or cannot extend the duration’. “If you assign a specific amount of term to the army chief then how would you remove him before the expiration of his term, if need be. Any new legislation passed by the parliament would require at least a simple majority — two-thirds majority required for a constitutional amendment — in both the lower and upper house of the legislature.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 17:37 UTC
FO spokesperson loses portfolio in major diplomatic reshuffle
Vice Admiral (R) Ather Mukhtar has been posted Ambassador in the Maldives. Major (R) Sardar Azhar Tariq Khan has been posted Ambassador in Kyrgyzstan. Mr Zahid Hussain, Minister Parep Budapest, has been posted Consul General in Frankfurt. Samina Mehtab, DG EAP, has been posted as Consul General in Chengdu, China. Mohammad Tariq Khan Wazir, Minister Pahic Canberra, has been transferred and posted as Consul General in Manchester, United Kingdom.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 17:37 UTC
Pakistan named No.1 travel destination for 2020
Pakistan was on Saturday named the top holiday destination for travelers for the year 2020 by the United States-based luxury and lifestyle publication Conde Nast Traveler. The listing follows several positive reviews of the tourist attractions in the country by travel bloggers, YouTube vloggers, magazines and adventure clubs. Last week, travel company Wild Frontiers named Pakistan as the country to travel to in 2020. In a short announcement, the company tipped Pakistan as the next big destination for a couple of years, reporting a 20 per cent increase in customers willing to travel to Pakistan compared to 2018. In 2018, the British Backpacker Society had also ranked Pakistan the number one travel destination in the world.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 17:37 UTC
Jamaican beauty becomes Miss World 2019
by News Desk , (Last Updated about 1 hour ago)Toni-Ann Singh from Jamaica was crowned as Miss World 2019 on Saturday. According to the organizers of the pageant finale , the second and the third positions went to France and India, respectively. Toni-Ann Singh became the 69th Miss World after winning the competition. The pageant finale was broadcast live, a week after the conclusion of Miss Universe event in Atlanta. Miss Universe was founded years after Miss World by a swimsuit company.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 17:26 UTC
135 govt organisations working without regular heads
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government has so far found failed to appoint regular heads of the large number of state-owned entities (SOEs) as 135 SOEs are currently being run on a stopgap basis, Pakistan Today has reliably learnt. Documents available with this scribe disclosed that 135 vacancies of CEOs/MDS/Chairman/DGs/Heads of Organizations in Corporation/Commissions/Authorities/Autonomous/Semi-Autonomous bodies etc in 27 ministries/divisions are currently lying vacant. And, out of 135, 14 organizations are near completion of filling the vacant positions while in the case of another 14, the relevant organizations have been recommended for restructuring /merger/liquidation/privatization and advised by the government not to appoint new /fulltime CEOs. However, the establishment division has now requested the administrative ministries/divisions to fill the remaining vacant positions on regular basis at the earliest instead of resorting to any stopgap arrangement. It is also learnt from the documents that Prime Minister Imran Khan in a cabinet meeting had expressed deep dismay over the adhoc manner which a large number of organizations were being managed and directed that immediate steps be taken to improve governance and efficiencies of the ministries/divisions.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 17:15 UTC
Students in Rajanpur take a hit because of 672 corrupt headmasters
Almost 700 school headmasters were booked over embezzlement charges totalling Rs46.9 million in Rajanpur district of Punjab, local news outlets reported on Saturday. It is pertinent to mention here that each school was given an amount between Rs1 million and Rs1.3 million for purchasing furniture. The technical team of the anti-corruption department carried out a probe into the the matter on the directives of its director and found irregularities worth Rs46.9 million in a Rs100 million project. The decision was conveyed by the District Central Administration (DCA) to the principals of the schools within its jurisdiction on Wednesday. The directives while addressing the issue, said any off from the school without prior approval will be marked as an absent.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 16:51 UTC
Govt decides to ‘reactive’ Civil Defence
ISLAMABAD: The government has decided to reactivate the Defence Planning and Civil Defence across the country as part of national war efforts to have a cohesive response from both military and civil sectors during any emergency situation. The military wing of Cabinet Division, which supervises the Defence Planning (DP), Civil Defence and other related subjects, has decided to reactivate strengthen the DP while expanding the same to provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan. Provincial Defence Planning (PDP) cells would be established at all provincial headquarters to streamline the mechanism in the civil sector and strengthen national war effort as per Guide to Defence Planning in Provinces-199. As per the available documents, the process of expanding/ strengthening DP was earlier discussed and approved by the DP forum of Secretaries Coordination Committee (SCC) headed by cabinet secretary in 2008. The same ToRs and documents would be shared with other provinces and GB.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 16:51 UTC
Zardari undergoes medical check-up at Karachi hospital
KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari on Saturday underwent a medical examination at the Ziauddin hospital in Clifton. The medical board at the hospital treated Zardari and advised him to undergo various tests for determining his current health position. He is currently undergoing several medical tests at the hospital. On Wednesday, the IHC granted bail to Zardari in the Park Lane and fake accounts cases on medical grounds against surety bonds of Rs20 million. The case against Zardari and Talpur was originally registered with the Federal Investigation Agency and was filed before a banking court in Karachi.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 16:18 UTC
Two more polio cases reported in Sindh, tally rises to 100
KARACHI: Two more polio cases were reported in Karachi on Saturday taking the tally of polio cases across Pakistan to 100 this year. Two new cases were registered in Mirpur Khas district taking the total number cases of polio in Sindh to 16, said the spokesman of Emergency Operation Centre (EMOC) for Polio here on Saturday. One is 36-month-old resident of tehsil Digri of Mirpur Khas district, who had contracted polio on 17-11-2019. According to available details, both the lower limbs of the child were initially affected by the virus but he didn’t suffer from any permanent disability. As for the 16 polio cases reported during the current year, six were from Karachi, two from Hyderabad, two from Larkana, two from Jamshoro, two from Mirpurkhas, one from Shaheed Benazirabad and one from Sajawal.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 16:11 UTC
China Foreign Affairs University scholars visit Lahore
LAHORE: The Lahore Council for World Affairs (LCWA) and visiting scholars of the China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU) had an in-depth exchange of views on bilateral, regional and global issues during the latter’s visit to Lahore at LCWA’s invitation from 8-12 December,2019. Besides talks with LCWA, the programme of the visiting CFAU delegation also included meetings with other think tanks in Lahore. Views were also exchanged on the growing tensions in the Persian Gulf region and the prospects of peace in Afghanistan. It was agreed that peace and stability in Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf region were necessary prerequisites for the region’s progress and prosperity. Various initiatives to promote peace in Afghanistan and the Persian Gulf region were highly appreciated.
Source:Pakistan Today
December 14, 2019 15:22 UTC